


Courageous Women

by Chie (Chierafied)



Series: Drabblers one shots HP [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, Feel-good, First War with Voldemort, Gen, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Pregnancy, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-07
Updated: 2015-02-07
Packaged: 2018-03-10 21:58:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3304862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chierafied/pseuds/Chie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“…Women though they were, they left behind them such a name for courage…”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Courageous Women

Lily cradled her warm mug. The sitting room was cosy and the flames flickering in the fireplace kept the coldness of January at bay. Lily hadn’t often visited the Longbottoms, but she liked the feel of the place. It seemed as nice and kind as its owners.

Alice was the centre of attention tonight. The bulge of her stomach under the green robes was just starting to get noticeable. Lily absentmindedly stroked her own abdomen. She would start showing soon, without a doubt… And then it would no longer be her and James’ secret (and Sirius’ and Marlene’s, because the godparents deserved to know) and they would have to tell everyone. But tonight was not the right time, tonight was for Alice. And she still had two weeks left until her first trimester would be over.

“You look contemplative,” Dorcas spoke from the sofa.

Lily smiled.

“I just thought it was curious, that we all would be here and now. We weren’t quite that close, back at Hogwarts…”

Dorcas has been in Gryffindor, and the captain of the Quidditch team before James. Though she and Lily had been on friendly terms, Lily has never really known her that well, because Dorcas had been two years above her. Likewise, Lily had always got along well with both Alice and Emmeline, but as they were both in different Houses and one year ahead, she hadn’t seen much of them outside prefect meetings.

But the world was quite different, here outside the safe walls of Hogwarts. This world was at war, and the four women gathered in the room had all chosen to fight.

“Hogwarts feels so far away,” Dorcas said wistfully. “And I suppose it makes sense we weren’t close back then but now… After seeing all we have seen… After being through…”

Dorcas fell silent, but she didn’t have to finish the thought. Lily knew what she meant. They had put their lives on the line, they had faced the enemy together and survived, and that created a special bond, and left a mark on the person.

 “Right then,” Dorcas said decisively, plastering a grin to her lips. Alice and Emmeline paused their conversation. Dorcas picked up her mug and raised it into the air.

“I propose a toast. To Alice, and to Baby Longbottom!”

Lily laughed and with Emmeline, echoed: “To Alice and Baby Longbottom!”

“Have you thought about names yet?” Emmeline asked, as Lily sipped her tea.

“A bit, yeah,” Alice replied, flushing slightly. “I think we’ll name her Enid, if it’s a girl. But we haven’t decided on a boy’s name yet. Frank’s really adamant about Nathaniel but I don’t know, I think it’s a bit too much…”

And for a fleeting second, Lily really was  _aching_  to tell about little Evangeline or Harry, but she could never steal Alice’s spotlight.

“Well that’s still better than Elvendork,” she muttered instead, earning laughs from the other girls.

“What does it feel like? Being pregnant?” Emmeline asked, ever the curious Ravenclaw.

“It feels amazing,” Alice breathed, her eyes alight.

“You  _look_  amazing,” Dorcas smiled.

“Thank you,” Alice returned the smile. “I have all this extra energy and I’m doing a lot of decorating; I’m already almost finished with the nursery.”

“Oh, you have to show us,” Lily insisted.

“I will, later, when Marlene’s here,” Alice promised. “I’ve felt great, but that also makes it that much more frustrating when people treat me like I was ill. I told you about work, right?”

“That you’ve been assigned to desk duty, only?” Emmeline asked.

“Yes. I feel like I could do so much more.”

Dorcas grimaced.

“I couldn’t take it,” she said, shaking her head.

“Well it is sensible,” Lily hedged. “You never know what could happen, it’d be irresponsible to send you out to the field.”

“I know,” Alice sighed, “but I don’t need to be bubble-wrapped, either.”

Lily nodded. She understood, although she was also horribly envious of Alice and her natural glow. Lily had the morning sickness, and every evening at 6 PM it felt like someone pressed an off-switch and she started nodding off. The mood swings were no walk in the park either, especially for poor, poor James…

They talked a while more, about their work and their men and the Order until the conversation was interrupted by the doorbell.

“That must be Marlene,” Alice smiled and went to answer the door.

True enough, a witch in purple robes and short platinum blonde hair stood on the doorstep.

“Sorry I’m late!”

“That’s fine, we haven’t really started,” Alice said. Marlene stepped in and followed the hostess into the sitting room where everyone was waiting.

“Here, have some tea,” Dorcas offered, pouring some to the empty mug on the table.

“Ah, perfect, just what I need to warm my fingers,” Marlene accepted the mug. “Oh, right,” she started to rummage the inner pockets of her robe and finally fished out a small, wrapped package, setting it onto the pile of presents on the table. “For you, mommy-Alice.”

“Thanks. I suppose I can start opening the presents now that we’re all here,” Alice smiled.

But Marlene dug through her pockets again, and pulled out another package.

“And this one’s for you,” she said, tossing it to Lily before plopping down to sit next to Dorcas.

Lily stared at Marlene, horrified, and her cheeks started burning as all the attention in the room immediately focused on her.

“What?” Dorcas shrieked.

“Lily…?” Emmeline began.

“Marlene!” Lily wailed desperately.

“Oh, shit, you  _still_  hadn’t told them?” Marlene bit her lip. “I thought this was a joint baby shower.”

“No,” Lily hissed furiously. “On both accounts.”

“How could you  _not_  tell us?” Dorcas pouted.

“Congratulations,” Emmeline smiled.

“Well, I suppose it’s a joint baby shower now,” Alice laughed.

Lily clutched the package in her lap and shrugged sheepishly.

* * *

 

* * *

 

* * *

_“’That’s Marlene McKinnon, she was killed two weeks after this was taken, they got her whole family. That’s Frank and Alice Longbottom […] Poor devils,’ growled Moody. ‘Better dead than what happened to them … and that’s Emmeline Vance, you’ve met her […] That’s Dorcas Meadowes, Voldemort killed her personally […] and … there you go, thought that would interest you!’ Harry’s heart turned over. His mother and father were beaming up at him, sitting on either side of a small, watery-eyed man Harry recognized at once as Wormtail: He was the one who had betrayed their whereabouts to Voldemort and so helped bring about their deaths.”_

\- Excerpt from J.K. Rowling's _Harry Potter And The Order Of Phoenix,_ Pages 173 and 174


End file.
